GB2393399 (Nasir) describes an airway device comprising an airway tube having a first end and a second end, the first end of which is surrounded by a non-inflatable laryngeal cuff which forms an anatomical fit over the laryngeal inlet of a patient and a buccal cavity stabiliser located on or around the airway tube between the laryngeal cuff and the second end of the tube, the buccal stabiliser being adapted to prevent rotational or side-to-side movement of the airway device in use.
Whilst such airway devices provide a significant improvement over the use of inflatable cuff airway devices, it is still sometimes necessary to intubate a patient during a procedure.
A number of attempts have been made to provide for an airway device which not only forms an external seal around the laryngeal inlet of the patient, but also serves as a guide to allow for the insertion of an endotracheal tube. However, such devices have always been inflatable, do not always provide for the endotracheal tube to be guided directly into the laryngeal inlet and instead can direct the endotracheal tube into the oesophagus of the patient, and can cause the airway tube of the airway device to become blocked cutting off the air supply to the patient.